Joseph S. Gruss

Joseph Saul Gruss (March 19, 1903 – July 3, 1993)[1] was an Austro-Hungarian Empire–born American financier, businessman, and philanthropist who supported Jewish education.[2]

Joseph S. Gruss
BornMarch 19, 1903
DiedJuly 3, 1993 (age 91)
NationalityAmerican
OccupationBusinessman
Known forfounder of Gruss & Company
Children2

Early life

Joseph Saul Gruss was born on March 19, 1903, to a Jewish family in Lemberg, Austro-Hungarian Empire as one of seven children.[1] His father, Isaac, was a Talmudic scholar and banker; his mother belonged to a family involved in the export grain business.[1]

Career

In 1939, Gruss founded a travel agency in New York City.[1] While he and his wife were in the United States, the Nazis invaded eastern Europe, and they were unable to return home. Their first-born child[1] and many of their relatives were murdered in the Holocaust.[2] In 1942, he founded the Wall Street firm Gruss & Company,[3][4] which focused on mergers and arbitrage primarily in the oil and gas industries. Thereafter, he engaged in oil and gas exploration and development primarily in Texas, Oklahoma, Wyoming, and West Virginia.[2]

Philanthropy

In the 1970s, Gruss focused on philanthropy particularly for Jewish education.[2] He supported hundreds of Jewish schools and thousands of students and educators.[1] He funded Yeshiva University's Caroline and Joseph S. Gruss Institute in Jerusalem;[5] the Caroline Zelaznik Gruss and Joseph S. Gruss Visiting Professorship in Talmudic Civil Law; and the Fund for Jewish Education in association with the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies and the United Jewish Appeal of New York.[4] In 1989, he funded the expansion of the White Plains campus of the Solomon Schechter School of Westchester to help accommodate the demands of Westchester's largest Jewish day school.[6] The Gruss Life Monument Fund was founded in 1991 to continue his charitable activities after his death.[1] The upper school of the Kamenitz Yeshiva in Brooklyn, New York is named Joseph S Gruss Yeshiva High School.[7]

Personal life

In 1934, he married Caroline Zelaznik (died 1987), a lawyer.[1] They had two children: Martin David Gruss[8] and Evelyn Gruss Lipper. His daughter was married to the Hollywood producer, author, and former New York City deputy mayor Kenneth Lipper.[2]

Death and legacy

Gruss died of heart failure on July 3, 1993.[3] His grandson, Joshua Carl Gruss, married the fashion designer Shoshanna Lonstein Gruss.[9]

References
  1. Gruss Life Monument Fund: "Our Founders – The Gruss Life Monument Funds was established in 1991 to perpetuate the philanthropic endeavors of Caroline and Joseph Gruss. Mrs. Gruss died in 1987, Mr. Gruss in 1993, but there is no doubt that their legacy is eternal" Archived 2015-03-15 at the Wayback Machine retrieved March 12, 2015
  2. New York Times: "Joseph Gruss, 91, Philanthropist Who Supported Jewish Schools" By ERIC PACE July 5, 1993
  3. "Joseph S. Gruss". The Tampa Tribune. Tampa, FL. July 6, 1993. p. 15. Retrieved March 25, 2022 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  4. The Tikvah Center at NYU School of Law: "The Annual Caroline and Joseph S. Gruss Lecture" retrieved March 12, 2015
  5. Yeshiva University: "Caroline and Joseph S. Gruss Institute in Jerusalem" retrieved March 12, 2015
  6. "Solomon Schechter School of Westchester: History of the School". schechterwestchester.org.
  7. "ROSENKRANZ". The New York Times. July 15, 1979. ROSENKRANZ - Miriam. Lincoln Square Synagogue records with sorrow the passing of the beloved sister of our dedicated Benefactor, Mr. Joseph Gruss, the beloved mother of Joseph Rosen, and grandmother of our member and regular Shabbat worshipper, Mr. ltzhak Rosen. May the families be comforted among the mourners cl Zion and Jerusalem.
    SHLOMO RISKIN, Rabbi
    STANLEY GETZLER, President

    ROSENKRANZ - Miriam. Yeshiva Toras Ernes, Joseph S. Gruss High School extends heartfelt sympathy to our beloved Honorary President Joseph S. Gruss upon the passing ol his sister. May the Torah learning of the students of the Joseph Gruss High School be a comfort to those that are in mourning.
    Samuel Klaus, President
    Rabbi Simon F. Segal, Exec. V.P.
    Rabbi Elias Schwartz, Dean
    Israel Schmell, Chmn of !he Board

    ROSENKRANZ - Miriam. Fifth Avenue Synagogue extends its heartfelt sympathy to Mr. Joseph S. Gruss and his family on the death of his sister In Israel.
    Adolph A. Kreltman, President
    Henry Hirsch, Chairman
  8. Welling, Kate; Gabelli, Mario (2018). Merger Masters: Tales of Arbitrage. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 49–57. ISBN 978-0-231-19042-8.
  9. New York Times: "WEDDINGS/CELEBRATIONS; Shoshanna Lonstein, Joshua Gruss" May 11, 2003
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